Downtown on Clinton Street, in an elegantly unassuming storefront is one of the most exciting meals in the city. Recently I had the pleasure of returning to WD~50 and bite after glorious bite I was left thrilled, surprised and just plain happy to be there.
Instead of the pre-set tasting menu, my table opted to create our own and in the end we tasted almost all of the appetizers and half of the entrees. I have good things to say about almost all of them and I'm borderline speechless about some (actually who I am kidding--the words will come).
I usually avoid Foie Gras on all menus due to the 10 million calorie-a-bite price tag that comes along with it but a forkful of Wylie Dufrense's whipped, sponge-like aerated Foie Gras and I felt like I was biting into an exotic chocolate mouse. It lingered in my mouth and floated down my throat and fell like a feather into my stomach. It was a good way to start the evening. I was made equally giddy by the Shrimp Spaghetti which wasn't actually spaghetti at all but beautifully crafted little strings of pressed shrimp masquerading as pasta covered in fresh tomato and basil. For entrees, we ooh-ed and aw-ed over the sweet Halibut floating in a hen o' the woods mushroom jus surrounded by soybean salsa and burnt lemon (the fish was so delicate that all you needed was a spoon to enjoy). We fell back into our cushy seats in ecstasy over the pork neck surrounded by smoked spaetzle with peach and almond. And we damn near fell off those plush seats as we finished the evening with a dessert of extremely light and sweet meringue surrounding spheres of passionfruit.
And finally the crème de la crème ...a tour of the kitchen (which anyone can gain access to with a polite request) and just like the meal it was elegant, sleek and full of chaotic beauty.
The sign that hung overhead summed up the entire evening...
WD~50
50 Clinton Street @ Rivington
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